Patient Story: Pioneering New Frontiers

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Pioneering New Frontiers in Diabetes

The day after Matthew Snider's first birthday, his parents noticed something wrong. Matthew was excessively thirsty, downing glasses of water in seconds. He was running through diapers and had lost weight in a matter of days.

Mark and Kelly Snider were no strangers to diabetes. A year earlier, diabetes brought the Sniders and their middle child, McCord, to Riley Hospital for Children from their home in Lafayette, Ind.

"We were getting ready for a trip when we started to suspect something was wrong with Matthew," said Mark Snider. "To be safe, Kelly and I checked him with McCord's [glucose] meter. It didn't even give a number. It just read 'High.' That was pretty scary."

"When children with diabetes are referred to Riley, they are often very sick," said Dr. Henry Rodriguez, diabetes specialist at Riley. "During that first inpatient stay, we work to regulate the child's insulin and blood sugar levels and educate the family on diabetes survival skills."

Both Matthew and McCord have a condition called Type 1 diabetes. It can develop at any age, although it is more typical in children and young adults. Type 1 diabetes results from an autoimmune response where the body does not recognize some of its own cells. With this condition, the cells producing insulin are mislabeled "foreign cells" and destroyed.

"Insulin therapy is used to control diabetes, but it isn't perfect," said Dr. Mark Pescovitz, immunology and transplant specialist at IU School of Medicine. "When blood sugar levels aren't controlled, you get serious long-term damage. We won't settle for just controlling diabetes. If we fix the problems, making the patient no longer diabetic, we prevent long-term damage."

Currently, there is no way to prevent diabetes. Studies conducted at Riley Hospital and IU School of Medicine are evaluating ways of delaying the onset of Type 1 diabetes. People having a close relative (parent, brother or sister) with Type 1 diabetes are more likely to develop the disease.

Through the National Institute of Health's Type 1 Diabetes TrialNet research group, Riley and IU School of Medicine join 13 other clinical centers known for expertise in diabetes and immunology.

"TrialNet puts IU and Riley at the forefront of diabetes research," said Dr. Rodriguez. "Not only are we working to revolutionize diabetes treatment, we are doing so with the collaboration of the nation's experts on diabetes and immunology in a very safety conscious environment."

The goal of TrialNet's prevention component is to stop or delay destruction of the insulin-producing cells in those at risk for developing Type 1 diabetes. The treatment and intervention component aims to preserve remaining cells in people with new onset Type 1 diabetes. As its national role in diabetes research expands, the Riley Diabetes Clinic continues to provide expert medical care, foster empowerment through education and restore independence.

The Sniders recently gained more family independence when Matthew joined McCord in getting an insulin pump. This small, pager-sized device delivers insulin directly to the body and administers a continuous, low dose to regulate blood sugar levels. While the catheter must be changed every few days, the need for daily insulin injections is eliminated.

"Now with both boys on the pump, we can finally leave the kids at Grandma's house overnight and know everything will be okay,"said Snider. "It's still pretty complicated, but until they find a cure, the pump sure makes our lives easier."

Diabetes Basics

Both Matthew and McCord have a condition called Type-1 diabetes. It can develop at any age, although it is more typical in children and young adults. Type-1 diabetes results from an autoimmune response where the body does not recognize some of its own cells. With this condition, the cells producing insulin are mislabeled "foreign cells" and destroyed. "Insulin therapy is used to control diabetes but it isn’t perfect," said Dr. Mark Pescovitz, immunology and transplant specialist at Indiana University School of Medicine.

"When blood sugar levels aren’t controlled, you get serious long term damage. We won’t settle for just controlling diabetes. If we fix the problems, making the patient no longer diabetic, we prevent long term damage." Currently, there is no way to prevent diabetes. Studies conducted at Riley Hospital and IU School of Medicine are evaluating ways of preventing or delaying the onset of Type-1 diabetes in people most likely to develop the disease. As with the Snider brothers, doctors and researchers know people having a close relative (parent, brother or sister) with Type-1 diabetes are more likely to develop the disease.

Diabetes Prevention Research

Clinical trials testing new approaches to Type-1 diabetes prevention and treatment may soon provide answers to at-risk or newly diagnosed children. Through the National Institute of Health’s Type-1 Diabetes TrialNet research group, Riley and I.U. School of Medicine join 13 other clinical centers known for expertise in diabetes and immunology. These facilities will be testing new approaches in understanding, preventing and treating Type-1 diabetes. Riley treats more children with diabetes than any hospital in Indiana.

"TrialNet puts I.U. and Riley at the forefront of diabetes research," said Dr. Rodriguez. "Not only are we working to revolutionize diabetes treatment, we are doing so with the collaboration of the nation’s experts on diabetes and immunology in a very safety-conscious environment."

The goal of TrialNet’s prevention component is to stop or delay destruction of the insulin-producing cells in those at risk for developing Type-1 diabetes. The treatment and intervention component aims to preserve remaining cells in people with new onset Type-1 diabetes.

Living with Diabetes

As its national role in diabetes research expands, the Riley Diabetes Clinic continues to provide expert medical care, foster empowerment through education and restore independence.

The Sniders recently gained more family independence when Matthew joined McCord in getting an insulin pump. This small, pager-sized device delivers insulin directly to the body and administers a continuous, low dose to regulate blood sugar levels. While the catheter must be changed every few days, the need for daily insulin injections is eliminated. "Now with both boys on the pump, we can finally leave the kids at Grandma’s house overnight and know everything will be OK," said Mark. "It’s still pretty complicated. But, until they find a cure, the pump sure makes our lives easier."